Business in Action, Second Edition - Softcover

Bovee, Courtland L.; Thill, John V.; Schatzman, Barbara E.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0130466190 ISBN 13: 9780130466198

Publisher: Pearson College Div, 2003

Synopsis

For Introduction to Business courses. This text's user-friendly format, manageable length, and up-to-date real world examples enable students to experience business firsthand. Business in Action takes students on an engaging exploration of the fundamentals, strategies, and dynamics that make the business world work. This exciting text offers numerous resources to simplify teaching, promote active learning, and stimulate life-long critical thinking skills.

About this title

From the Inside Flap:

PREFACE

Step into the world of opportunity in the 21st century. That's what students will experience as they turn the pages of Business in Action and learn about the dynamic world of business that awaits them. A world that will change more in the next ten years than it has in the last fifty. A world of velocity, complexity, mystery, success, failure, and never-ending opportunity.

Of course, we've been writing about the world of business for decades in Business Today, and this new textbook follows its respected tradition of excellence and currency. But it's different. In Business in Action we've simplified things a bit. And we've slimmed things down (including the price). Best of all, we've loaded the chapters with a wealth of innovative, real-world, skill-building, and highly involving activities so that beginning business students can learn the key business fundamentals in an intriguing and involving manner.

Students will appreciate the text's user-friendly magazine layout, manageable length, eye-catching graphics and exhibits, lively, conversational tone, entrepreneurial focus, and broad selection of featured companies—many of which are service-based and tie in with Business PlanPro software. Instructors will appreciate the students' stimulation, the lively classroom debates sparked by such features as "Business Mysteries," "Handling Difficult Situations on the job," and "Building Your Team Skills," and the unsurpassed instructional resource and supplemental package that accompanies this text.

So step into the world of opportunity in the 21st century, and explore Business in Action. We think this is the text students have been looking for! BUSINESS IN ACTION IS A PLUS!

Business in Action is a compelling model of today's most effective instructional techniques. This textbook is interactive + Internet-supported + integrated + innovative + intriguing, so that using this text adds up to a plus for both instructors and students.

Five i+ factors will make your classes livelier, more relevant, and more enjoyable—for you and your students.

interactive. Prentice Hall's Learning on the Internet Partnership (PHLIP) Web site is the most advanced, text-specific site available on the Web! Internet-supported. "See It on the Web" and "Learn More Online" Internet exercises give students practice with the rich resources of the World Wide Web. E-Business in Action, the text's online supplement, extends chapter coverage of the all-important topic of electronic commerce. integrated. Integrated questions and exercises link chapter material with concepts covered previously in the text and require students to use critical-thinking skills to make important decisions. intriguing. A series of intriguing business mysteries at real companies promotes an exciting, active learning environment in the classroom. innovative. Only Business in Action has such a wide variety of innovative and involving real-world features and activities within a flexible and customizable framework. REAL-WORLD FEATURES AND ACTIVITIES Behind the Scenes

Facing Business Challenges. Each chapter begins with a slice-of-life vignette that attracts student interest by vividly portraying the business challenges faced by a real businessperson. Each vignette ends with thought-provoking questions that draw students into the chapter. References to the company and businessperson throughout the chapter help students see the connection between the chapter content and the real world of business.

Meeting Business Challenges. Each chapter ends with a case that expands on the chapter-opening vignette and describes a business problem. The case includes three critical-thinking questions that ask students to solve the problem by applying the concepts presented in the text. Plus, students can learn more about the company featured in the case by completing the "Learn More Online" exercises. Featured companies include AOL Time Warner, Whirlpool, Patagonia, Top of the Tree Baking Company, Virgin Group, Wainwright Industries, Kinko's, Starbucks, UPS, Harley-Davidson, Continental Airlines, Levi Strauss, Amazon. com, The Concrete Doctor, and E*Trade. INTEGRATED APPROACH TO E-BUSINESS

Business in Action's six-way integrated approach to electronic business reinforces its importance to students:

Chapter coverage. Internet technology and its impact on the way companies do business are featured throughout the chapters and explored in detail in Component Chapter C. "Focus on E-Business" boxes. Special feature boxes highlight the differences that exist between conducting business in the e-world versus conducting business in a traditional business environment. Featured e-businesses. Chapter vignettes, case studies, boxes, business mysteries, and in-text and online examples feature popular e-businesses, such as AOL Time Warner, Cisco, Dell, E*Trade, eSchwab, Priceline, 1-800-Flowers, iPrint, eBay, Amazon, and more. Online supplement. Written specifically to accompany this text, E-Business in Action focuses entirely on e-business hot topics and the latest trends in e-commerce. Video cases. Professionally produced video cases give students a first-hand view of the challenges that BMC, a business animation company, faces as it transacts business electronically. Internet exercises. Students become acquainted with the wealth of information on the Web by completing the text's "See It on the Web," "Learn More Online," and supplemental online Internet exercises. BUSINESS MYSTERIES AND KEY PRINCIPLES

Students help two business detectives, Nick and Natasha, investigate and solve a series of intriguing business mysteries at the end of each text part. The goal is to find out why, when a company appears to be doing everything right, it surprisingly stumbles or falls, or suddenly changes its course of action. Featured companies include Intel, DaimlerChrysler, Boeing, PeopleSoft, Saturn, and Schwab.

To solve the company mysteries, students apply imaginative thinking to the evidence and use clues strategically placed in the margins throughout the textbook. These clues consist of key business principles that highlight the latest management thinking by today's most recognized and respected business leaders—Peter Drucker, Clayton Christensen, Gary Hamel, Bill Gates, Thomas Friedman, Arthur Levitt, Jr., Tom Peters, Al Ries, Jack Trout, and more.

The "Business Mystery" features continue with supplemental online exercises. Students are asked to solve the mysteries of e-business using the same chapter clues and featured companies. SEE IT ON THE WEB FEATURES AND EXERCISES

Students become acquainted with the Web and its wealth of information that relates to the content of Business in Action. In each chapter, three "See It on the Web" features describe Web sites that reinforce and extend chapter material.

Three end-of-chapter exercises are directly tied to the showcased "See It on the Web" sites and give students experience with the rich resources of the Web. The exercises provide students with navigational directions, guidance, and hints. Students who complete these exercises will learn how to use the Internet proficiently and productively. SPECIAL FEATURE BOXES

Special feature boxes make the world of business come alive with fresh, never-before-seen examples that are carefully placed in each chapter to further enhance student learning. Each box includes two critical-thinking questions that are ideal for developing individual or team problem-solving skills. Students will enjoy the variety of business topics, which include

Enterprise Rent-A-Car Tries Harder, and It Pays Off · How Cisco Bought Its Way to the Top · How Michael Dell Works His Magic · Office Ethics: Teams Make It Hard to Tattle · Mervyn's Calls SWAT Team to the Rescue · Chek Lap Kok's Turbulent Takeoff · Is Telecommuting Right for You? · Are Temp Workers Becoming a Full-Time Headache? · It's Okay to Fall Asleep on the Job · It's the Brand, Stupid · Auditors and Clients: Too Close for Comfort?

Special feature boxes titled "Focus on E-Business" highlight the many challenges companies are facing in the world of electronic commerce. Topics include

Here Comes the Electronic Highway · Roadblocks on the European Superhighway · Create a Winning Web Site · Is the End of the Beginning Near? · Seven Habits of Highly Effective E-Managers · This Cyberbazaar Is Strictly Business-to-Business · Living with the E-Cultures of Hype and Craft · Your Right to Privacy vs. the Marketing Databases · The Electronic Price Isn't Always Right · E-tailing: It Takes More Than a Web Site

SPOTLIGHT ON FIVE MAJOR BUSINESS CHALLENGES

Five business themes are woven into the chapter text. Real-world examples and discussion bring vivid insights into how businesspeople face these challenges on a daily basis. They are

Keeping Pace with Technology and Electronic Commerce Supporting Quality Initiatives and Achieving Customer Satisfaction Starting and Managing a Small Business in Today's Competitive Environment Thinking Globally and Committing to a Culturally Diverse Work Force Behaving in an Ethically and Socially Responsible Manner EXERCISES AND LEARNING TOOLS FOCUS ON REAL-WORLD COMPETENCIES AS RECOMMENDED BY SCANS

As described in the SCANS (Secretary's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills) report from the Department of Labor, it is essential that students meet national standards of academic and occupational skill. Like no other introduction to business text, Business in Action emphasizes the skills and competencies necessary for students to make the transition from academia to the workplace.

To help accomplish the SCANS goal, this text offers extensive, specifically designed pedagogy that is grounded in real-world situations. This pedagogy includes features and exercises that stimulate critical thinking skills such as observation, interpretation, organization, decision making, analysis, and practical application of chapter concepts—at a level that students will understand and enjoy. SKILL-BUILDING, PRACTICAL, REAL-WORLD EXERCISES

Business in Action includes an extraordinary number of pedagogical devices that simplify teaching, facilitate learning, stimulate critical thinking, maintain interest and enjoyment, and illustrate the practical application of chapter concepts. These include

Building Your Team Skills. Chapter-related exercises teach students important team-building skills such as brainstorming, collaborative decision making, developing a consensus, debating, role-playing, and resolving conflict. Handling Difficult Situations on the Job. Short, experiential exercises expose students to real-world business situations in which they must use the knowledge they've gained from the text, along with their good judgment, to solve a challenging workplace situation. Taken from actual events, these exercises are designed to develop student problem-solving and critical-thinking skills. Sharpening Your Communication Skills. The ability to communicate well—whether listening, speaking, reading, or writing—is a skill students must possess to have a successful business career. These exercises call on students to practice a wide range of communication activities, including one-on-one and group discussions, personal interviews, panel sessions, oral and written papers, and letter-and memo-writing assignments. Exploring Career Opportunities. Students are given the opportunity to explore career resources on campus, observe businesspeople on their jobs, interview businesspeople, and perform self-evaluations to assess their own career skills and interests. Developing Your Research Skills. These exercises familiarize students with the wide variety of business reference material available and give students practice in developing research skills. LEARNING TOOLS THAT HELP DEVELOP SKILLS AND ENHANCE COMPREHENSION

Business in Action uses a variety of helpful learning tools to reinforce and apply chapter material as well as stimulate higher-level thinking skills. These include

Learning Objectives. Six chapter-opening learning objectives establish benchmarks for measuring success. Each numbered objective is clearly stated to signal important concepts students are expected to master. The numbered objectives reappear in the text margins close to the related material. The end-of-chapter "Summary of Learning Objectives" reinforces basic concepts by capsulizing chapter highlights for students. Questions for Review. Five end-of-chapter questions reinforce learning and help students review the chapter material. Questions for Analysis. Five end-of-chapter questions help students analyze chapter material. One of these questions is ethics-based and marked with a special icon. Questions for Application. Four end-of-chapter questions give students the opportunity to apply principles presented in the chapter material. Two of these questions are integrated and give students the opportunity to apply principles learned in earlier chapters. Marked with a special icon, these integrated questions encourage students to think about the "big picture." Four-Way Approach to Vocabulary Development. The text's four-way method of vocabulary reinforcement helps students learn basic business vocabulary with ease. First, each term is printed in boldface within the text. Second, a definition appears in the margin adjacent to the term. Third, an alphabetical list of key terms appears at the end of each chapter, with convenient cross-references to the pages where the terms are defined. Fourth, all marginal definitions are assembled in an alphabetical Glossary at the end of the book. Team Building Exercises. In addition to "Building Your Team Skills" exercises, many of the exercises included in Business in Action are designed to be worked on in teams. This is especially true for application and critical thinking questions, in addition to all cases, Web-based exercises, business mysteries, and research exercises. Lively, Conversational Writing Style. Read a few pages of this textbook and then read a few pages of another introduction to business textbook. We think you will immediately notice how the lucid writing style in Business in Action makes the material pleasing to read and easy to comprehend. We have carefully monitored the text's content and its reading level to make sure they are neither too simple nor too difficult. Comprehensive Video Cases. Brand new and professionally produced Video Cases feature BMC, a business animation company. Each video case includes questions and exercises that help students understand how business principles and chapter concepts apply to the workplace. WHEN YOU ADOPT BUSINESS IN ACTION, YOU GET MUCH MORE THAN A TEXTBOOK!

Welcome to the myPHLIP Companion Web site located at prenhall/bovee, your personal guide to the free online resources for your book.

Featuring one-click access to all of the new resources created by an award-winning team of educators, myPHLIP (Prentice Hall's Learning on the Internet Partnership) provides a personalized view of the great new resources available:

myPHLIP pages—Your personal access page unites all your myPHLIP texts. Notes—Add personal notes to our resources for personal reminders and references. Messages—Instructors can send messages to individual student...

From the Back Cover:

Five factors will make your classes livelier, more relevant, and more enjoyable.

interactive

—The myPHLIP (Learning on the Internet Partnership) companion Web site offers one-click access to a wealth of free online resources created by an award-winning team of educators. It's by far the most advanced, text-specific site available for an introductory business course!

Internet-supported

— "See It on the Web" and "Learn More Online" Internet exercises give students practice with the rich resources of the World Wide Web. These features expose students to resourceful business sites that extend chapter material. All exercises provide navigational directions as well as student guidance and hints, offering a truly productive learning experience.

integrated

—Integrated questions and exercises link chapter material with concepts covered previously in the text. This requires students to use their critical thinking skills to make important decisions.

innovative

—Only Business in Action has such a wide variety of innovative and involving features, activities, and resources within a highly flexible framework:

• Behind the Scenes Vignettes
• Business Mysteries
• Business PlanPro Exercises
• Focus on E-Business Boxes
• E-Business Chapter
• E-Commerce Online Supplement
• See It on the Web Exercises
• Video Cases
• Sharpening Your Communication Skills
• Handling Difficult Situations on the Job
• Building Your Team Skills
• Exploring Career Opportunities
• Developing Your Research Skills
• Spotlight on Five Major Challenges
• myPHLIP Companion Web site with extraordinary resources
• E-Biz: Prentice Hall Guide to E-Business and E-Commerce

intriguing

—A series of intriguing business mysteries at real companies promotes an exciting, active learning environment in the classroom. The company being investigated in each "Business Mystery" has violated at least one fundamental principle of business. Students are asked to assist two business detectives in solving the mystery by identifying, analyzing, and applying clues to the evidence in each case.

About this edition

• Publisher: Pearson College Div
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0130466190
• ISBN 13: 9780130466198
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 480